1. Field
Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a rechargeable battery that couples or connects an electrode tab to an electrode assembly.
2. Description of the Related Art
With technology development of mobile devices, demand for a rechargeable battery as an energy source has increased. A rechargeable battery can repeatedly perform charge and discharge, unlike a primary battery, which is not designed to be repeatedly charged and discharged.
For example, a rechargeable battery of a small capacity is used for a small portable electronic device like a mobile phone or a laptop computer and a camcorder, and a rechargeable battery of a large capacity is used as a power source for driving a motor of a hybrid vehicle and an electric vehicle.
For example, a rechargeable battery includes an electrode assembly that performs a charge and discharge operation, a pouch that houses the electrode assembly, and an electrode tab that draws out the electrode assembly to the outside of the pouch. The electrode assembly is formed by welding an electrode tab to an uncoated region of an electrode and by spiral-winding an electrode together with a separator.
Because a portion at which an electrode tab is located has a larger thickness than that of a portion at which an electrode tab is not located, a deformation of an electrode assembly occurs at the electrode tab. For example, flatness of an electrode assembly and a cell including an electrode tab is deteriorated and thus a design margin of a thickness is reduced.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the disclosure and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.